Rakia chief denies $5bn swindle rumour

CEO says he is in UK on official Rakia business

The CEO of Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (Rakia) denied that he had embezzled $5 billion and fled the UAE to Britain, saying he was in the UK for an official Rakia business, a newspaper reported on Monday.

Khater Massaad was reacting to rumour circulated on mobile phones and some websites that he had swindled the money and fled to the UK in his private jet, the Arabic language daily Emarat Al Youm said.

“These are mere rumours that have hurt my reputation…I have traveled to the UK on an official trip as part of my work with Rakia,” he told the paper.

Massaad also denied that he had been sacked from Rakia, saying that his contract with the Authority has expired and would not be extended. He told the paper that he was till acting as CEO of the government-owned Rakia.

The paper also quoted police sources in the northern emirate as saying they have not received any reports about embezzlement within Rakia, which was established in 2005 to attract capital to the emirate.

Massaad is a Swiss national with a PhD in Geophysics and an Msc in Mathematics from Switzerland. He also holds the position of adviser to the RAK Crown Prince, Chairman of the Board of Directors for Rakeen, CEO of Al Hamra Hotels, and MD for RAK Airways.